Lifestyle, Miscellaneous, Pain
Reader Response on Assisted Death
I recently applauded the Province of Quebec which is attempting to legalize assisted death. There is no better example of what's wrong with the Charter of Freedoms when it does not allow freedom from pain on the death bed. I did not ask for reader response, but received a ton of it.... From WP, "I enjoy your column in the Kelowna Courier and I couldn't agree more on assisted suicide. I'm a volunteer counsellor at a hospice. The problem is that families will not let go even though the patient is ready for the big trip. I have seen them rescind "do not resuscitate" and have to remind them this decision is not about them, but the wishes of the patient"... From...Read More
Miscellaneous, Pain
Assisted Death: Its Time has Come
How ironic that Quebec, a Roman Catholic province, should lead the rest of Canada into the realm of dying with dignity and freedom from pain. But it's not shocking since the same province pushed for the liberalization of abortion and same-sex marriage. So, congratulations to La Belle Province for taking a stand on this contentious issue whose time will surely come. But I can hear the howling and irrational fears that will descend on Quebec. In 1984 I presented my view on assisted death to a committee of Canadian senators. It was a waste of my time and taxpayers' money. The outcome was pre-determined as several Roman Catholic senators served on the committee. That's akin to putting the fox...Read More
Lifestyle, Nutrition, Pain, Vitamins
Have Arthritis? Try Eating Healthy
There's nothing good about terminal cancer pain other than the pain finally ending with death. But there's another type of chronic pain, arthritis that goes on and on year after year. It can be a living hell. It's estimated that over 50 million North Americans are afflicted with this disease. Now, a report from Tufts University claims that eating right can help the aching joints of both osteoarthritis, the wear-and-tear type, and rheumatoid arthritis. Dr. Miriam Nelson, an expert on nutrition, says, "You might be surprised how modifying the diet can decrease stiffness and inflammation". Her first suggestion is to start with water. This liquid provides moisture and structural support to joints. It also carries nutrients to where they are needed,...Read More
Cardiovascular, Gastroenterology, Medicine, Pain
How to Decrease the Risk of Pain Relievers
"Remember, you never get anything for nothing". That's a caution I've repeated over and over to patients. Why? Because some people naively believe it's possible to get health benefit without risk. Today, millions are popping a variety of over-the-counter pain relievers while ignoring important red flags warning they may result in death. Heart and Stroke Risk The American Heart Association reports that, with the exception of acetylsalicylate acid (Aspirin) and possibly naproxen (Aleve), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen (Motrin and Advil) increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. This is particularly true for those who have already suffered heart attack or are at high risk of cardiovascular disease. Now, a report in the Journal "Circulation" has more disturbing news. Dr....Read More
Heroin, Miscellaneous, Pain
Who Says That Heroin is an Illegal Painkiller?
The Globe and Mail was wrong in a recent column about the insite heroin clinic in Vancouver, when it stated that heroin was an illegal drug. Its editors have forgotten that when I wrote for The Globe and Mail, I spent thousands of dollars placing ads in the newspaper during a campaign to legalize heroin. And that Jake Epp, The Minister of Health, announced on Dec 4, 1984 that heroin would be legalized to treat terminal cancer pain. But what happened after that? Obituary columns daily report that loved ones “passed away peacefully”. But this is a downright lie. Most people still die in pain. More palliative care centers are desperately needed in this country. In 1979 I wrote that English doctors had...Read More
Genitourinary, Pain
Think Twice About Hernia Surgery
A reader asks, “Is it necessary to get a hernia repaired quickly?” The time-honoured tradition has always been to fix it. But is this approach always the right one? Or is “tincture of time”, namely watchful waiting, the best way to treat this common condition? A hernia is a protrusion of bowel through a weak spot in the abdominal wall near the groin. But there is no sexual fairness in this condition. As one of my surgical professors used to say, “Sometimes you get the big brown egg”. In this case the egg goes to men, as 90 percent of hernias occur in males. In the past, surgeons believed that failing to return the bowel to its natural location inside the abdomen was...Read More
Orthopedics, Pain
Billie Jean Says So. Really?
Sir Willam Osler, former professor of medicine at McGill and John Hopkins Universities once remarked, “A doctor does not fully understand a disease until he suffers from it.” Due to a recent illness I couldn’t agree more. During Arthritis Month, I wrote a column about osteoarthritis, how it is possible to decrease the risk by losing weight, taking vitamin C to manufacture collagen, the major component of cartilage, and using your two legs to pump nutrients into damaged cartilage. It’s ironic that a few weeks later I suddenly developed increased pain in one hip. Then one morning I could hardly walk, even with the help of a cane. Osler was right. You have to experience pain to know how...Read More
Miscellaneous, Pain
BioSil: The Natural Way to Prevent and Treat Fragile Bones
What causes the holes in Swiss cheese? I’m sure the Swiss know the answer, but I don’t. But I do know what makes holes in bones, causing osteoporosis. Today millions of North Americans are taking prescription drugs to treat this devastating disease. But there’s a safer, natural remedy, BioSil tm, to prevent “holey” bones. The figures are frightening. Studies show that one in four women and one in eight men over age 50 have osteoporosis. And with an aging population we can expect more cases in the years ahead. Who develops this crippling disease depends on several factors. Genetics plays a role in certain families. So does being thin, small boned and of white or Asian ancestry. Smokers, those who take three...Read More
Pain
Natural, Safe Ways To Ease Arthritis Pain
“Why shoot a mouse with an elephant gun?” I recently remarked to a patient suffering from osteoarthritis (the wear and tear type). She had never been advised to try a variety of these lesser medications before using stronger drugs which may cause major complications. Vitamin C I believe this vitamin is the most overlooked natural remedy in treating aging joints. It’s an indisputable fact that vitamin C is needed to produce healthy collagen, a vital component of cartilage. Unhealthy cartilage eventually means bones grind against one another causing pain. Researchers at Boston University Medical Center studied the vitamin C intake of 640 people. They discovered that those with a higher intake of vitamin C were protected against progression of...Read More
Cancer, Heroin, Pain
Dying in Pain Is the Number One Fear
Woody Allen once joked, “I’m not afraid of death. I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” A world-wide survey by the Lien Foundation in Singapore recently reported the primary worry of the elderly is dying in pain. It listed England as the best place to die. Canada and the U.S tied for 9th place. As a physician I’ve always known that pain is the overwhelming fear, particularly for cancer patients. I’ve also known that heroin has been available in Britain for 90 years to ease the final agony of death. This knowledge triggered a visit to England to witness its use and to question why it wasn’t used for this purpose in Canada. I didn’t realize my probe...Read More
Pain
Two Words, Irresponsibly Permissive, Tell A Story
How did this country and the U.S. become such a drug-addicted society? A recent report states that the pain killer, Oxycontin is now the number one drug used by addicts. But whether it’s this drug, crack cocaine, crystal meth or others, the result is always the same, wasted lives, needless deaths, crime and tons of taxpayer’s money that should be used for productive purposes. It’s a cop-out when Ministers of Health claim there’s no easy answer. What’s appalling is how Oxycotin is being so ill used and easily available in Ontario alone. In 2008 provincial pharmacies dispensed prescriptions for Oxycontin that were more than double the national average. Then in 2009-10 the Ontario Drug plan processed 3.9 million opioid claims made...Read More
Pain
Dying and Pain Is The Number One Fear
Woody Allen once joked, “I’m not afraid of death I just don’t want to be there when it happens.” A world-wide survey by the Lien Foundation in Singapore recently reported the prime worry of the elderly was dying in pain. It listed England as the best place to die. Canada and the U.S tied for 9th place. As a physician I’ve always known that pain was the overwhelming fear, particularly for cancer patients. I also knew that heroin has been available in Britain for 90 years to ease final agony. This triggered a visit years ago to England to witness its use and the question of why it wasn’t used for this purpose in Canada. I didn’t realize my probe would...Read More
Orthopedics, Pain
A Shock Absorber to Help Knee Pain
Is there any similarity between a car and the human body? We do have one thing in common, the need for efficient shock absorbers. Cars provide a rough ride when worn-out shock absorbers fail to cushion the blows of a pot-holed road. And for thousands of patients broken-down shock absorbers in the knee mean there's never a day free of debilitating pain. There is a way to ease this discomfort called "Viscosupplementation or joint fluid therapy" It's one of the best keep secrets among patients and many doctors. Osteoarthritis has become a major disability. More than four million people are affected with knee osteoarthritis in Canada, most are in their career prime ages 20-64.The World Health Organization claims that osteoarthritis is...Read More
Heroin, Pain
Rights of Addicts? And Rights Of Cancer Patients?
Should the injection site for addicts in Vancouver be closed? Proponents argue that one million injections in Vancouver have saved lives and decreased the risk of HIV infection. Others contend injection sites send the wrong message and it should be closed. But in this heated debate why don't both sides and our government attack the root cause of this cancerous problem. First, how sick are these heroin addicts? I've no idea, as I've never treated addicts. But Dr. Theodore Dalrymple, a British prison doctor and psychiatrist, has treated addicts for years. In his book "Romancing Opiates" he writes that heroin is not as highly addictive as is claimed and withdrawal is not medically serious. He contends that a useless medical bureaucracy...Read More
Neurology, Pain, Surgery
How The Horse’s Tail Can Paralyze You – Cauda Equina Syndrome
Why call 911 when it's the same old pain? After all, John X had suffered from occasional bouts of back pain for years and usually the discomfort subsided within a few days. However, two or three times he had been totally disabled from severe bouts of sciatica, requiring bed rest for several weeks. But, with the use of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs the severe pain that radiated down his leg gradually went away. One afternoon, after a sneeze, pain struck with a vengeance. This time the usual medication failed to numb the agony, but he refused to seek help. Three days later when he was unable to urinate, or have a bowel movement, his family finally called 911 and he was...Read More
Orthopedics, Pain
Relieving Pain by Low Intensity Laser Therapy
What can you do if you've tried every conceivable way to relieve pain? You've been treated by anti-inflammatory drugs, cortisone, pain killers, physiotherapy, massage and finally surgery. Yet the pain continues unabated. A technique, known as "Low Intensity Laser Therapy" (LILT) could be the answer. Dr. Fred Kahn is Director of the Meditech Laser and Rehabilitation Centre in Toronto, and a specialist in pain control. He believes in curing the pain by curing the cause. And I've talked to several of his patients about how LILT had eased their pain and changed their lives. PC, a 43 year old jogger, collided with a glass door on returning to her hotel. When the door shattered, a large fragment of glass penetrated her knee....Read More
Orthopedics, Pain, Sports
It Was A Pain From Hell
Have you ever had to crawl on your hands and knees because of severe back pain? It's not a dignified position. But it recently happened to me. What caused this problem and how did I finally get relief? We all love our mothers and I dearly loved mine. But unfortunately she had scoliosis of the spine and passed this genetic problem along to me. Then in my final year at The Harvard Medical School I awakened one morning with the worst headache of my life. A lumbar puncture revealed poliomyelitis. Scoliosis and poliomyelitis is not a good combination to maintain a healthy spine. As a result over the years I've suffered from occasional attacks of sciatica, usually appearing for no apparent reason. But...Read More
Orthopedics, Pain
Single Injection Relieves Arthritis Joint Pain for Months
"What can I do to relieve the pain in my knee?", a patient recently asked me. She had been treated by cortisone injections, Celebrex and others medications and it was still impossible to walk without pain. But there is a less known way to treat this disabling condition. A recent report from the World Health Organization claims that osteoarthritis of the knee is the fourth cause of disability in women and the eighth most important one for men. Currently this disease affects 10 percent of those over 55 years of age and 25 percent suffer severe disability. And it's no fun to suffer from osteoarthritis, to know that every step of the day will be painful. Or become impossible. Osteoarthritis goes back...Read More
Neurology, Orthopedics, Pain
Course 101 In Back Pain
Ask me about Economics 101 and I'll flunk the question. But what about course 101 in back pain? In this case I have some answers. Ones that will help readers who ask "What is the best treatment for my aching back?" Many years ago while in Hawaii I suddenly coughed and an excruciating pain shot down my leg. There was no doubt about the diagnosis, a ruptured spinal disk, and the pain was so severe I desperately needed a place to lie down. Fortunately I was near an old historic church on a quiet back street. I walked in, in agony and stretched out on a not-so-comfortable wooden pew. But fate was not kind. Five minutes later a group of tourists entered...Read More
Neurology, Pain
Unroofing The Spinal Column to Treat Spinal Stenosis
Ask most people what causes back pain and you get a variety of answers. Many mention sciatica, lumbago, a slipped disk or chronic back strain. But few mention or have ever heard of a condition called "spinal stenosis". Yet it's a disease that we will hear more and more about with an aging population. Years ago spinal stenosis was called creeping paralysis .It was accepted that if you lived long enough you would eventually get it and learn to live with it. Today we know that spinal stenosis is due to a narrowing of the spinal canal (the cavity in the vertebral column through which the spinal cord runs). This can occur in the cervical and thoracic spine but is more commonly...Read More
Pain
New treatment For Tennis Elbow and Painful Heel
"Why has God done this to me?” a patient asked several months ago. She had developed tennis elbow and had been forced to stop playing her favourite sport. But to make matters worse she had also developed plantar fasciitis, commonly known as painful heel. And she having difficulty walking. But she learned that God hadn’t totally deserted her. Due to a new treatment she’s now back playing tennis and walking without pain. Tennis doesn’t rival skiing down the Alps to head the list of sports causing serious injuries. But it’s estimated that eight million North Americans suffer from tennis elbow. Another seven million from painful heel. And doctors have needed the wisdom of Solomon plus a little...Read More
